So here's a novel idea: when a device reaches its end of life, manufacturers should provide users with a way to keep the flame burning. In a nutshell, that's what Lenovo has done with the Ideapad K1.

Here's the gist: the company is finished with this device. They no longer sell it, and it's clear that, past the most recent update (Android 3.2), they no longer plan to support it. So, they made a smart move: they built stock, unmodified Ice Cream Sandwich for the the K1, and released it to the public.

Of the many Honeycomb tablets currently on the market, we don't often talk about the Lenovo IdeaPad K1. That doesn't mean it's a bad product -- Lenovo is one of the best names in the business, and If you want to pick up the Honeycomb-powered IdeaPad K1, this is the time to do it. For a limited time, if you grab the K1 and use the coupon code K1KEYFREE at checkout, you'll receive the keyboard dock for absolutely free.

The IdeaPad K1 from Lenovo, released earlier this year, is bursting with features and ports, but reviews suggest that it is perhaps not the best Android tablet available on the market today. Nevertheless, it is a powerful little beast running Honeycomb and for the next two days (9 to 10 October) Best Buy is offering this device for only $329.99, that's $120 discount of the regular price ($449.99).

In case you have forgotten, the K1 runs on Android 3.1 and has the following specs:

1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 T20 processor

10.1" (1280x800) display

Android 3.1

32GB of storage

1GB RAM

5 MP rear camera, 2MP front cameras

Built-in 802.11b/g/n wireless LAN

Bluetooth 2.1

Mini HDMI output

microSD card slot

This deal probably won't appeal to Christy, who won an IdeaPad K1 in our banner design contest, but for the rest of you interested in Lenovo's Android offering, pick one up from BB by 10 October 2011.

As you guys should already know, from time to time we mix things up a bit and run creative giveaways that give the most talented of our readers a real chance to win something big. Remember the 404 page design (also see this), which happens to be my favorite contest so far?

The banner design contest was created to run in a similar vein, and now that we've finally had enough time to sort through all the submission (there were over 150 links to look through), we decided to award the prize, a brand new Lenovo IdeaPad K1 Tegra 2 tablet, generously provided by NVIDIA, to...

Out of all the giveaway/contests we do here at AP, my favorites always end up being the creative kinds because they always leave us with long-lasting memories and give a chance to truly talented people who put in work into their entries. Such were the photo, the Twitter design, t-shirt design, and most recently the 404 page design giveaways (the last one being my favorite).

The Contest

It's now time to launch another creative giveaway because 1) everyone likes free stuff and 2) we need banners.

The IdeaPad K1 Honeycomb 3.1 10.1" tablet from Lenovo, released in July (not to be confused with the more expensive ThinkPad tablet), has only been out for a bit over a month, but Fry's Electronics is already folding its cards and letting it go for a whole $100 off the $449.99 price sticker. Well, technically, you get a $100 Fry's gift card, but hey - free is free, right?

The only problem - the deal is only good for today, Saturday, August 27th in all Fry's retail locations.

Lenovo finally made its Honeycomb-sporting IdeaPad K1 an official commodity - and it's basically just another fish in a sea of Android 3.1 tablets. It's filled with the nearly-identical hardware guts of the top Android tablets on the market today:

10.1 1280x800 display

1GHz Tegra 2 chipset

1GB RAM

16/32GB on-board storage; SD Card slot

MicroHDMI

WiFi

Optional 3G (AT&T, Verizon, Sprint)

5MP rear camera; 2MP front

Android 3.1

Of course, Lenovo has made a few changes to add its own custom touch to the device, like the Lenovo Launcher: a five-pane launchpad dead-smack in the middle of the screen that allows quick access to a user-customizable set of shortcuts.